A dhow is a type of ship currently seen sailing on all oceans.
It is based upon traditional Arabic sailing vessels.
In the game, the dhow, along with the baghlah, was supposedly introduced to the game by the brigand king Azarbad the Great.

Real-life counterpart

A dhow is a traditional Arab sailing vessel with one or more lateen sails. It is primarily used along the coasts of the Arabian Peninsula, India, and East Africa. A larger dhow may have a crew of approximately thirty while smaller dhows have crews typically ranging around twelve. (ref)

Comparison to other ship types

Of the other small ships, the dhow is probably most similar to the cutter. The dhow has the same maximum complement, non-gunnery stations, and maximum damage as the cutter.

The dhow, however, has the same maximum firepower as the sloop: 4 cannons. It also has the exact same hold capacity. Dhows, however, can have 4 swabbies, compared to 3 for sloops.

The dhow has medium cannons, whereas the cutter, sloop, and longship have small cannons. Medium cannons means the dhow can be a reasonable opponent against both small and medium ships. With only 4 guns as well, a skilled gunner with the right board can ensure that even the most trigger-happy battle navigator will have guns available.

Blockade use

The topic of this section is subject to personal opinion, and does not represent any one absolute truth.

If you disagree, discuss your concerns on the the talk page before editing.

Dhows are similar to the cutter--both ships are capable of moving four times per round and both able to sustain the same amount of damage. The dhow has more firepower (medium versus small cannon) but it is easier to achieve the maximum rate of fire on the cutter (8 cannons/2 gunning stations on the cutter versus 4 cannons and only 1 gunning station on the dhow).

The dhow compares weakly in certain aspects to larger ships on the blockade board:

Both the baghlah and the war brig are capable of firing twice as many cannonballs per side. Also, unlike the dhow, both of these larger ships have enough spare cannons to fire at least some shots in both directions if needed.

The baghlah takes 60% more damage to sink than the dhow and the war brig can withstand twice as much damage as the dhow.

The dhow has the second smallest influence circle in the game, which makes it very difficult for a buoy-sitting dhow to both influence a buoy and avoid enemy fire.

The dhow's only advantages against larger ships are reduced staffing requirements and the fact that it can move four times in one turn while the larger ships may only move three times per turn making it comparable in that respect only to the longship.

Despite the dhow being outclassed on the blockade board, some have proposed specialized uses for the dhow in blockade boards, including racing to buoys at the start of a blockade to earn points before the larger ships can reach those buoys, influencing a isolated buoy which is currently uncontested by larger ships or finishing off gravely damaged ships that are limping towards a safe zone. The dhow may also often be found in blockades with low jobber turnout where war brigs and war frigates are unfeasible.